David Smith: Cubes and Anarchy
Audio Guide Playlist

Art historian and David Smith biographer Michael Brenson, art historian Sarah Hamill, sculptor Charles Ray, and Peter Stevens, director of the David Smith Estate discuss a selection of works from the exhibition David Smith: Cubes and Anarchy. The audio guide also includes commentary by sculptor David Smith.

NARRATOR: This tall, thin sculpture was a breakthrough for Smith. When he made it in 1955 he had been working in a very linear manner, making drawings in space that were meant to be viewed frontally, like a picture. Here he carries the assertive gestures of line drawings into the round, creating a rhythmic play of planes and edges. The sculpture’s boxy geometry also looks forward to the Cubi, a series he would begin in 1961.

Transcript

NARRATOR: This tall, thin sculpture was a breakthrough for Smith. When he made it in 1955 he had been working in a very linear manner, making drawings in space that were meant to be viewed frontally, like a picture. Here he carries the assertive gestures of line drawings into the round, creating a rhythmic play of planes and edges. The sculpture’s boxy geometry also looks forward to the Cubi, a series he would begin in 1961.